Police shoot, kill man armed with chef's knife

PHOENIX -- Police shot and killed a man who had been drinking and allegedly went after his girlfriend with a chef's knife.

It happened after 11 p.m. Sunday in the area of Seventh Avenue and Beardsley Road.

According to police, it started with a call regarding a domestic situation between Alfred San Antonio, 51, and his 54-year-old girlfriend.

"These types of calls are inherently dangerous," Phoenix police Sgt. Steve Martos said, explaining that there are many factors that play into such emotionally charged situations. He said officers have to be prepared for anything.

The woman, who escaped mostly unharmed and called police, said the man attacked her with a knife. She told officers that her boyfriend had been drinking throughout the evening and engaged her in an argument.

She told him that she wanted to leave for the night and began packing personal belongings. That's when he allegedly grabbed a knife and indicated he was going to harm her.

The woman said she attempted to disarm him and get away, sustaining a minor injury during the struggle. Investigators said the man stabbed himself with the knife as the woman ran outside.

When officers arrived on the scene, he allegedly lunged at them with the knife. That is when an officer opened fire, killing San Antonio.

A neighbor told 3TV's Jill Galus that he heard several shots, although he didn't immediately recognize them as gunfire.

"I was a little too tired, so I couldn't tell if someone was maybe banging on the screen door or if they were actually gunshots," Justin Blum said. "I got up and came out and saw the cops everywhere."

"In this neighborhood, we don't have a history of violence ..., so I didn't automatically assume that that's what happened," Blum continued, explaining that one of the officers on the scene assured him that there was no further danger.

Martos said the neighborhood where this happened is typically quiet and that this was an isolated incident.

No officers were injured in the incident.

The officer who fired his weapon will be placed on paid administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation. That is standard procedure anytime an officer fires his or her service weapon.